Errand Gone Awry
by heyytalia
Summary: Even if he is an Avenger or not, Peter is willing to help Tony Stark as best as he could. He's just not prepared when the time came for him to do so.
1. Chapter 1

Tony Stark is a few seconds away from ripping his hair out.

He knew giving Pepper a day off was the right thing to do and he also had to redeem himself to her because he apparently missed an important meeting with some Japanese representative that was requesting to invest in the Japanese branch of SI or something.

He's also aware that being a CEO can be very frustrating but this was not how he remembered it because this is just ridiculous that he might as well be in Hell.

Faxes and letters were printed out almost minutely and he had at least 25 stacks of paperwork that needs to be signed and returned within this day.

Tony can hear his phone buzzing non-stop from a distance, whether if it's because of Pepper or Parker or Rhodes, he had no time to stand and answer it with both of his hands occupied quite literally.

Pepper must be worried that he forgot how to sign and might have burned all of the paperwork and no matter how tempted he is to just do that, he still care enough for Pepper's career.

Parker...the kid must also be worried because their last interaction was two weeks ago and he also promised to let him help with upgrading some of his inventions. Guess that will have to wait for another week.

Rhodes will surely kick, prosthetic or not, his stupid ass as soon as he caught a sight of him. He's a best friend to die for and Tony knew he doesn't deserve have someone like that in his life.

Also, there's that one call he owes Steve Rogers.

Rogers. As much as he feels unsettled by the guy's best friend's presence, a meeting must happen between them because Tony doesn't need anymore distractions. He can try and work it out with Barnes and Maximoff because he's just tired of all these bullshit.

Tony unceremoniously dropped the pen and letter on the table to rub his hands against his face.

Fuck.

He can last up to 4 days without sleep and go through the day with only coffee running through his system when he's occupied by something, but right now he'll have to admit that with all the shit raining down on his life - the Accords, the falling out, the Government breathing down on his neck and the Siberia - he's just really, **really** tired.

The genius gritted his teeth in annoyance when one of his hand unconsciously dropped down to his chest. He hates feeling like this.

Fuckfuckfuck...

If accepting both of his and Rogers' faults during the Accords can bring him peace then fucking fine. He'll just accept it and try to be better for all the people who are left in his life.

He'll do this for Pepper, for Rhodes and for Parker.

He can't afford to drag them into his problems. Not anymore.

Tony closed his eyes in resignation then brought his shaking hands to mess with his messy and oily hair. The moment he felt the tightening in his chest, he knew he needed to calm down.

The brunet took a deep breath then held it for a few necessary seconds before slowly releasing the said air out of his lungs.

When he can properly breathe again, he took in his surroundings. He's at his office at the new base and not somewhere freezing.

There's also no howling cold wind blowing around, only the sound of papers being printed and fluttering can be heard.

He noted that his phone stopped buzzing.

That's probably a good sign.

He glanced at his printer and down at the papers scattered across the floor.

He let out a deep sigh.

Look at what his stupid ass did again. He just can't stop making a mess where ever he go, can he?

Perhaps, this is actually his secret power all along.

Tony crouched down from his chair and carefully retrieved the papers. He observed the stack forming on his hands and sighed once more.

He'll never finish all of these today. Despite his trust and confidence in the redhead CEO being firmer than his trust and confidence in himself, he doubt that Pepper would have too.

After collecting all the fallen paperwork, the genius stood up but not before letting out a groan from back pain.

God was he aging. Also, he can't believe he admitted that.

Tony placed the newly-formed stack of papers on his already crowded desk. He clicked his tongue out of annoyance and rearranged the other stacks.

Whether he deserve this or not, this is still going to kill him.

Somewhat satisfied, the brunet backed up a little to observe his work. For an engineer who's used to a messy workplace, he's actually proud of it.

Not of himself though.

However, his small celebration was short-lived when something pointy made contact with the sole of his right foot after he took a step back.

It hurt like a son of a bitch.

A pained hiss escaped Tony's lips as he practically jumped away from his previous spot. His eyes immediately looked for the damned material on the floor and almost scoffed out loud when he spotted it.

It was a Lego.

A Hell-sent piece of plastic murder weapon disguised as a building toy managed to hurt Tony Stark.

Well, it was his fault for removing his shoes in the first place.

With a huge headache approaching, Tony managed to pause the printer (the companies can fucking wait) before dropping back down on his chair. It's not as comfortable as a bed but he can manage.

His hands found his face and from there, he started to massage his forehead. He beat down the huge urge to sigh once more. Sighing more than ten times a day is probably not healthy.

Then again, what part of him was healthy in the first place?

Tony rolled his chair a little towards the Lego before picking it up without needing to stand from it. The brunet inspected it and blinked in bewilderment.

It was a Lego Star Wars character.

When did he got this?

He unconsciously started to move the toy's limbs around as he pondered on about whether or not he bought this deadly plastic. He's sure he had seen this before.

 _"Oh! We also build things and structures using Lego when we have spare time. I-I mean not that you need to now that Mr. Stark-sorry if I ramble too much-"_

The brunet let out a snort at that moment. Of course it's the kid's toy.

Parker is a huge fan of Star Wars. So is his best friend apparently.

He's not exactly fond of the franchise but he had seen his fair share of the movies.

He twiddled with the Lego for a whole minute before the buzzing of his phone brought him back and reminded him of...tasks.

Damn it, Ms. Potts.

Tony pushed his chair back towards his desk to start signing once more but something touched his toe and because of the Lego experience earlier, he almost banged his sore knee on the piece of mahogany wood out of instinct.

Holy crap, forget about getting killed by a certain redhead, he'll die out of heart attack at this point.

Cursing under his breath, he reached down to retrieve the damned paper and he made sure to crumple it a little.

His irritation diminished almost immediately when he caught what was written on the piece of paper.

It was Steve fucking Rogers' letter.

Something seemed to clogged his airway again and Tony had to grip the edge of his desk for leverage and anchor.

He wasn't in Siberia anymore. There was no Vibranium metal impaled on his chest. Just him, his office and the sweet, **sweet** oxygen.

That thought did the trick and the next thing he knows, he's breathing properly again.

Jesus Christ.

Tony gave the paper a weak glare as he recalled what he had read from it. Stupid, stupid, stupid.

Rogers doesn't need to do anything. He was just being the righteous and glorified hero of the past and present the world views him. He wasn't supposed to be viewed or acknowledged as a public menace.

On the other hand, Tony shouldn't have overreacted about the revelation that Barnes - **no** - _The Winter Soldier_ was the one who killed Howard and his mother. He wasn't even close with his parents because it's either they're too busy with work or he's too busy in his own reckless world.

A bitter snort escaped the brunet. Howard was right. Tony is a demented trouble magnet.

For a minute, his reckless acts and lunacy flashed before his mind. For a minute, he contemplated whether or not he should have died in Afghanistan.

Whichever it was, his life choices never changed for the better. Maybe the world have been in a better, better place if he didn't exist?

There's gotta be some different dimension out there that must have no Tony Stark in them and he's willing to trade even his own life just to see if that world is happier.

Tony simply folded the letter again and opened one of the drawers on his desk. The burner phone was lying innocently in it but the said device drives the brunet to no end. Either it's guilt or annoyance, he had no time to ponder on it.

He placed the letter along with Peter's death plastic inside of the drawer and tried not to shove it close. He'll have to give the kid his toy back some time next week but not now, this day, he'll focus more on keeping his head intact.

Tony grabbed his pen and some random file on his desk. He glared at the words that seemed to be mocking him-

"Um, Mr. Stark?"

To say that Tony didn't jump up from his chair and immediately had his Iron Man Gauntlet pointed at the intruder was an understatement.

"M-Mr. Stark?"

Tony almost choked on his own spit when his mind finally registered the intruder as the Parker kid. He dropped his hand just as fast as relief started to replace his panic.

Then his relief was steadily being replaced by irritation.

Parker didn't even looked fazed by his action, he just looks at Tony with that bambi eyes of his with worry swimming in them. Worry for him.

Like what the actual fuck.

Tony pinched the bridge of his nose as he screw his own wary eyes shut. He was glad that he was leaning on his chair or he, without a doubt, would've sank to the floor.

"Jesus, kid. What the fuck." He mumbled.

He doesn't need his eyes to know what Parker was feeling. Distress and worry flowed out of the kid like waves that Tony felt overwhelmed for a second but it doesn't help his irritation.

"What are you doing here." It wasn't even a question.

Tony knew that he sounded like an asshole right now but it had been a long, long, day and he actually wants to sleep. Yes, Tony "I don't need to sleep just give me the damn coffee already so I can be functional" Stark is admitting that.

He can also imagine the way the kid would flinch and have that kicked puppy look on his face and crap does he remind Tony of Steve Fucking Rogers-

The brunet gritted his teeth and clutched his left arm as it started to feel numb, "Fuck."

This sent the other to panic and he heard the shuffling of the pair of cheap and washed out Converse shoes of the teen against the carpet. He should probably buy the kid a new pair of shoes.

Tony let go of his other arm to hold out a hand to stop the kid. He opened his eyes and couldn't help grimacing at the look on Parker's face.

The brunet sighed and flopped down on his chair and willed himself to stare back at the kid standing stiffly in front of his desk.

"Again, what are you doing here?" He tried softly once more. Just because life's being a bitch to him, doesn't mean he get to be a bitch to others.

"W-Well, you weren't answering any of our calls," Peter started to stammer, "So I also got worried so Miss Potts - I mean _Pepper_ \- told Happy to drive me here to check on you and-"

"Whoa there," Tony huffed teasingly, "Slow down, Parker. Take a breather. You're not in a Marathon."

The younger brunet's cheeks flushed in embarrassment, "I'm sorry, Mr. Stark-"

"You can just call me Tony, ya know."

"But-"

"Well I think it's pretty unfair if Ms. Potts gets to be called by her name."

Peter's flush brightened, "Oh, it's because s-she-"

"Threatened you?" Tony snorted, "Yeah, she's like that. You'll get used to her though but do try to heed her warning."

"Of course."

The genius smirked at that but it faltered when the numbness spread throughout his left arm the second time. He had to clutch it again out of instinct.

A flash of worry and panic replaced the flustered look on Peter's face. When he took two steps forward, Tony shook his head hastily.

The kid looked eagerly ready to jump across his desk or throw the table aside and the brunet didn't know if he should laugh or cry about it.

"This will pass soon, Parker." The brunet flashed a smile that doesn't quite reach his eyes, "Don't get your panties in a twist."

The kid gave him a blank look but reluctantly shut up. There was silence for a few seconds before Peter spoke in a serious tone.

"Have you taken your pills yet?"

If Tony was caught off guard of this, he didn't show it and instead shrugged, "Don't know what you talking about, kid."

The addressed teen gave Tony Stark an unimpressed look that scarily resembles Pepper Potts expression when she's unhappy and also Steve fucking Rogers' own look of disappointment.

Tony narrowed his eyes at that look, "Did... Pepper told you something?"

Peter sighed at this and dropped his unimpressed look to let pure exasperation take its place.

"No, Pepper didn't mention anything at all." The teen ran a hand through his messy hair, "It's just that...May have the same condition."

The other pursed his lips, "Does she have enough supply? Does she need to be checked out by a specialist? I could call someone-"

"No, I take May to her doctor twice a week." Peter puffed, "I also get enough time to check on her too."

Tony opened his mouth to state another proposal but he was cut off, "A-And we're not talking about Aunt May. You're the main topic here."

The genius kept his face nonchalant and chose to remain silent.

"Oh my God, you're more stubborn than her," Peter expression pinched even further, "I'm just really worried. Y-You said you would call me the other day and then you didn't answer any of my - our calls so I thought something might have happened and-"

A small yelp escaped his lips when Tony leaned towards him and flicked his forehead. It didn't hurt but it was unexpected and it sure did shut him up.

"You shouldn't be wearing that expression," Tony chided, "Not yet at least. Maybe when you're at the certain age where you start experiencing back pains."

Peter rubbed a hand on his forehead but he managed to smile cheekily at the other, "Like you?"

He knew he should have been offended by that on so many levels but the genius only snorted indignantly, "I'm not that old, kid. Heart problems or not, I can still kick the living crap out of people."

The teen's already small smile faltered, "You sure you're okay, Mr. Stark?"

Tony could've retorted with a snark however, the look on the younger male's face pinched his heart at the wrong place. "I'll manage." He said, "I always do, Parker."

The other nodded his head before his gaze landed on the stacks of paperwork on his desk. The teen visibly grimaced at it.

"I guess that kinda answered why you weren't answering any of our calls."

"You reckon." Tony deadpanned.

"Have you eaten breakfast yet, Mr. Stark?"

The brunet blinked up at the teen, "Breakfast?"

"Yeah," Peter blinked back at him, "It's 8:30 a.m. and sure you've been here for a long time."

The brunet's expression became bewildered, "It's that early? Then why the heck are you here, aren't you supposed to be in school?"

"It's actually-"

"I can't believe this!" Tony crossed his arm with a puff, "Pepper actually let you do this? You can't be skipping school because of me, kid. One skip and it all goes downfall. You should be really thinking about your future."

"You don't understand, it's-"

"Damn right, I don't understand!" The brunet threw his arms up, "I'm going to have to talk to Ms. Potts and Happy about letting you ditch school, young man. What would your Aunt say about this little stunt of yours if she finds out. She'll have my head served on a platter, that's for sure!"

Peter dropped his bag on the floor and sighed in annoyance, "Today's Sunday. Geez, Tony calm down!"

The said man stared back at the young male.

Horror dawned on the other's face, "I-I didn't mean it to come out like that!"

"I-I'm sorry Mr. Stark," the blush came back full force as he waved his hands around, "It's just that today's Sunday so I don't actually have classes. So please don't freak out!"

"Wow, I'm the one freaking out?" Tony shook his head with a short laugh, "While here you are freaking out like you cursed my name or something. Trust me kid, I've been called by many things over the past decades. Just ask Rhodes, he'll tell ya **all** about it."

Peter could only nod meekly. That gesture irked the other somehow.

"Hey come on," the genius rolled his eyes, "There's nothing wrong with calling me Tony. I'd actually appreciate it more than the name people used to address Howard with."

There's definitely something more about that statement but Peter settled by nodding instead, "Alright, Tony."

"Good." Then the brunet gave him a quick body inspection and clicked his tongue, "I doubt you've consumed your breakfast as well. Fast metabolism or not, you're still a growing boy."

Peter grinned, "As a matter of fact, I already ate this morning. May had to go to work really early so she had time to cook food."

"Why do you sound so smug about it?" Tony grumbled before yawning. He blinked away the blurriness from his eyes and ignored the teen's concerned gaze.

Peter frowned and opened his mouth-

"Nope. Nyet. Nein. Nada." The genius shook his head vigorously, "I don't want to hear another nagging from you, Parker. I already have Pepper and Rhodey for that and I definitely don't want or need in any form another mother hen in my life."

"Well, at least let me get you something to eat." The teen bit his lower lip, "Happy told me that you tend not to eat for a very long time and I don't think I wanna know how long is that 'very long time.'"

"I drink coffee."

"Coffee isn't actual food."

"My place. My rules so I say it is."

"If I've known better, it seems like you're trying to replace all the liquid inside your body with coffee."

"Oh God, will you stop?" Tony dragged a hand across his face, "You sound do much like Pepper. That's creepy."

"Not as creepy as you comparing me to an adult woman."

Tony gave him a blank look but Peter just outright laughed at him.

"You done yet, Maleficent?"

The teen wiped at his eyes, "Y-Yeah, sorry about that, Tony but I'm serious, if you haven't eaten yet, I could get you something."

Tony raised an eyebrow, "What, you're going to cook? You sure it actually is cooking or is this an excuse to do experiments in my kitchen and burn the living Hell out of it?"

"Hey, I can cook," the teen tried to scowl, "May taught me a few things or so."

The genius gave him another blank look.

"Okay, Ned's mother taught me how to cook basic dishes."

Tony took a deep breathe then shook his head, "I really appreciate that but I don't think there's supply in the kitchen for you to smell and cook, Ratatouille."

"Wait, you mean to say that there's still nothing inside your fridge?"

"Just recently moved here you know. It's not like food is the main priority and in case you haven't noticed, there's no one here to appreciate them."

"Then what have you been eating for the past 2 weeks?" Peter felt faint, "Please don't say coffee."

"I've been having cup of joes."

The teen looked at him incredulously and before he could stop himself, the words slipped past his mouth, "You're impossible."

"That's what Pepper said." Tony mused, "Then Rhodey and Happy. Hell, even Fury and Hill said that to me too."

The young male could only stare at him like he grew a second head.

"I was actually going to let FRIDAY do the grocery shopping but then for some shitty reason, she suddenly went offline!"

"So the sooner I finish these damn things," Tony gestured to the stacks, "The sooner I'll be able to check on my baby girl because she deserves to be treated well. It's already killing me that I'm not starting on fixing her."

He then perked up, "Hey, you said Happy drove you here, right? Go call Hogan up, I'll make him do the groceries. I'll be having company later this day or this week and it'll make me a terrible host if I don't provide them food."

There are so many, many questions flying through Peter's head right now but he ignored those, "How about I do the groceries while Happy buy you food instead?"

This time, it's Tony's turn to look at him incredulously.

Peter only smiled back, "It's fine, Tony. I've been doing chores for May before and I doubt that Happy would've actually agreed with the grocery shopping, he hates crowds."

"I would like to address the weird fact that you knew Happy hates crowds but yeah, I feel him so who am I to judge?" The brunet shrugged indifferently, "Plus, he can't decline. I'll cut off his raise if he does."

"I'll just pretend I didn't hear any of that."

"Alright kid if that's what you want then go for it." Tony reached inside of his pocket to retrieve his leather wallet, "Don't say I didn't warn you but I'll send Happy to you once he delivers this 'food' you speak of."

He tossed two credit cards and a personal ID onto the table along with a crumpled paper. Peter blinked at them, confused.

"Two?"

"For you and Happy."

"What's with the ID?"

"Some would probably be alarmed that Tony Stark's credit card is in the possession of a sixteen year old. That'll hopefully be considered as proof but if they don't believe, just threaten them that they'll be sued."

Oh.

The teen grabbed the materials and stuffed it inside of his pocket, "We'll be back soon."

"Obviously." Tony then looked thoughtful, "Or you can keep them, I wouldn't mind."

Peter sighed and crouched down to retrieve his bag. He got up and glanced back at the desk, "Maybe you should take a break."

"The only thing I'll be breaking is my neck if I don't finish this today."

"A short break then."

"I can multitask." Tony leaned against his chair, "Been doing that before you were even born."

The teen slung his bag behind him but something cold touched his back. "Oh!"

The brunet cocked his head to the side as the other rummaged through his backpack. Peter's hand emerged from it while clutching a bottle full of green liquid.

He presented it to Tony, "You can have this. It's a vegetable smoothie, I think."

The genius glanced at it with slight suspicion, "May made this?"

"May fails at cooking meatloaf but trust me when I say that she makes awesome smoothies."

Tony took it and noticed that it's still pretty cold, "She made this for you."

The teen shrugged, "She does that."

The brunet opened the bottle and took a tentative sip then his eyes widened. Peter grinned at that, "Told you it's awesome."

"Why isn't this a franchise?" Tony took another huge gulp, "Remind me later to make this a franchise."

"I didn't peg Tony Stark as a smoothie lover."

The addressed man only hummed as he continued to chug it down. Only when it's half full that he finally pull the bottle away, "You know what, I'll just hire your Aunt instead."

Tony observed the bottle for a while. Dummy should learn a thing or two from May. He should introduce the Parkers to his demented robotic child.

He felt like his stress reduced immensely but it soon skyrocketed again when his phone started buzzing again.

Tony scowled and stood up from his chair then walked over to his phone.

"This is your cue to leave, Parker." The brunet picked up his phone then used his other hand to gesture to the elevator, "Now, scram."

Peter wanted to say something more but the other already answered the call. He just slung his bag again before heading towards the elevator.

"No Pepper, I haven't set my paperwork on fire," Tony scoffed, "You don't smell smoke, do you?"

The teen didn't get to hear what he said next once the doors of the elevator closed and he descended with it.

A lot of things happened that Peter couldn't wrap his mind around them. He took out the crumpled paper from his pocket and went to see the list.

His eyebrows furrowed and a confused frown made its way on his lips.

Mr. Stark wants him to buy blueberries, oranges and plums? That's probably normal but the names listed beside the fruits worries him.

Last time he checked, some of these people are legally announced as fugitives.

So why does Mr. Stark wants him to meet with Captain America?


	2. Chapter 2

Peter bit his lower lip and tried not to fidget once he reached Happy and the black service car.

"So what did Boss say?"

Peter already had one of the credit cards on his hand, "Tony needs to eat. He's only been drinking coffee for the past 14 days. Like, is that even possible?"

Happy sighed and took the card from the teen, "He does what he want, kid. You'll get used to him."

He then cocked an eyebrow, "Tony? Already on the first-name basis?"

Peter flushed slightly, "He insisted it."

"Alright then." The other just shrugged at this, "What're you up to now?"

"I'm going to pick up his groceries." the teen says, "Tony said that he'll be having guests over sometime this week."

"Guests?"

Peter bit the inside of his cheek, "Not sure."

Stupid! Who even said that Captain America and the others will be the guests? Why would you even hide it from Happy?

"Definitely no idea," he lied, "But Tony doesn't want to be a bad host so I'm helping him."

Happy snorted then gave his shoulder a quick pat, "Well good luck with that then. Glad, the task didn't land on me."

"I told him that."

"What?"

"I told him that you don't like shopping and crowds in general."

"I'll pretend I didn't just heard that."

"That's what I said to Tony too when he said that he'll cut off your raise if you don't comply."

"I have a raise?"

"Now you know."

Happy and Peter stared at each other.

"I owe you a second time, kid."

"Don't worry," The teen grinned, "Happy I could help."

The man groaned and internally prayed for whatever Entity are out there that he survives this ride with Parker.

Happy took out his keys and turn around towards the car without a word. Peter picked up on this and opened the door before going inside of the car.

This is going to be a **long** day.

The ride, fortunately for Happy, was silent.

The man adjusted the rear-view mirror and glanced between the road and at the teen's troubled face. He appreciate the peace and silence yet it's a bit unsettling at the same time.

Happy was 99.99% sure that he had to max the radio's volume to drown out Peter's voice. Guess, this was the gift of whoever noticed his prayer.

Now what can only be heard inside the car was the soft tune of one of Elvis Presley's songs.

While the other was relaxed, Peter was reviewing the list in his mind.

Okay, first thing to do is go grocery shopping. Buy some fruits and canned goods and meat products. That should be easy enough.

Then after that, he had to visit a retirement home to pick up some pamphlets and more paperwork apparently.

Lastly, he's meeting up with Captain America.

Oh God.

Right now, he's pretty sure this was not the list Tony was meant to give him. This is probably the billionaire's to do list of some sort.

Peter chewed his lower lip. What if he's not meant to do this? Should he call and tell Tony about this?

Well, he can just do the groceries and leave the other things listed for Tony to finish. That would be the right thing to do, wouldn't it?

Suddenly, Tony's tired and pained expression flashed in his mind. The poor man already had his platter full of stressful tasks.

He may not exactly know why or how the Avengers disbanded but he knew that something terrible had happened and it left Tony in an uncomfortable situation. He drifted back to the things the man had done for him. The suit, the mentorship and the chance to be something much more. Those were more than enough.

There's nothing wrong with returning the favor, right?

Peter sighed. Besides, it's not like he's going to engage in a battle against the Rogue Avengers. He'd been there, done that and he can still feel the heavy mass that slammed into him that day. A slight shudder passed through him.

He'd be lying if he say that this will be easy. He's just afraid that he'll jinx the whole thing.

"You done daydreaming back there, kid?" Peter was startled by the voice, "We're already here."

The teen blinked in bewilderment. That was a fast ride.

Peter glanced at Happy's annoyed expression then outside the window. There he found a Pizzeria which was known because of their famous pizza that the New Yorkers need.

"Please don't get me wrong, I'm glad that we're finally getting food but shouldn't we get Tony something more healthy first?"

The man only gave him a deadpan expression, "What? Like McDonalds?"

Peter frowned in confusion, "Huh? N-No, I mean maybe we should get him some kind of salad or anything without grease."

"Most food nowadays are made up of grease," Happy snorted, "Tony will eat the salad but not before he finished consuming these 'non-healthy' foods so that kind of beats the purpose."

"I-I suppose." The teen pursed his lips.

Happy sighed in frustration, "I know you're worried kid and I appreciate that, I really do. It's just that I've been with Tony for a very long time and I know in situations like this, he'll appreciate eating his comfort foods."

Peter's eyes widened at that.

"I-I didn't intend for it to come out like that," the teen started rambling, "I know that you and Tony are close, I just thought that he should eat a bit more health-friendly but of course, you're still the one in charge and I know I have no right to say anything against-"

"Jesus, Parker calm down." Of- _fucking_ -course the kid misunderstood.

"There's no use getting stressed out by some damn food." Happy rolled his eyes exasperatedly, "Look, if it makes you feel better, Tony have this weird obsession with blueberries so why don't you buy him some of those while you're at it."

Peter nodded his head, "Y-Yeah, I'll get those, thanks for telling me that."

There were a bunch of fruits that were written on the list but he didn't see Blueberries. Maybe Tony just forgot to write it there...

Despite that thought, it doesn't seem right to forget your own favorite snack but then again these groceries are probably for the Rogue Avengers. Tony's been sacrificing a lot of things these days.

The sound of the door slamming brought Peter out of his thoughts.

"Just wait there," Happy grumbled, "This won't take long."

Without hesitating, the teen got out of the car too. He smiled sheepishly at the man's bewildered expression, "I think I'll just go walk all the way there."

"Do you even know where _**'there'**_ is?" Happy shook his head, "No, you're going to stay here."

"It'll be easier this way," Peter insisted, "I remember Aunt May bringing me here before so I know I can navigate myself around plus I have a tracker on me."

The other remained silent for a moment and observed the teen in front of him.

"Okay then," He said slowly, "I'll let you do what you want this time but I need you _not_ to do anything _reckless_. Just like you said, I have a tracker on you so absolutely **no** funny business. Got it?"

Peter beamed, "Yes, boss!"

Happy just sighed again before walking towards the Pizzeria. The teen took one more glance at the man's retreating back before starting his first errand of the day.

Cassie glanced around as tears started to gather around her eyes. She was in the middle of the streets of the big and vast new city and she's lost.

She couldn't find her dad and this made the tears fall down her cheeks.

People looked at her but never went near her and some even pass by her like she wasn't even there.

She wants to go back to her dad so bad.

She balled her fists and rubbed her eyes before sobbing loudly.

This made more people to avoid her.

 _'I just want to go home...'_

"H-Hey kid?" A soft voice beside her asked, "Is there something wrong?"

Cassie took her fists away and opened her already stinging eyes to look at the person who asked.

She found herself blinking when she saw a teen with the biggest, brownest doe eyes she had ever seen _(Bambi!)_ crouched beside her and looking at her with a kind and concerned expression on his face.

She hiccupped once before shaking her head, "N-No..."

The teen glanced around before looking back at her, "Are you lost? Are you looking for someone?"

"I want to go back to my dad!" She cried out, "I want to go home!"

She sobbed once more before he placed a soft hand on her head and spoke in soft voice, "Hey, hey, it's alright. You're going to be alright."

His hand rubbed her hair soothingly that it made Cassie suddenly relaxed, "I'll help you find your dad."

She gazed up at him surprised and curious, "Y-You would?"

He smiled softly and patted her head, "Of course."

She blinked her eyes up at him, "Promise?"

"Yup, I promise."

Cassie's sure of that but her past experiences with her dad, not that she's angry at him, she wanted to make sure so she lifted her left hand and she showed him her pinky. "Pinky promise?"

He laughed softly and nodded before doing the same thing. They then interlocked their pinkies together, "Pinky promise."

She grinned at him, a snot running down her nose but she didn't care and neither did the other as he only chuckled at her appearance before fetching a handkerchief from his pocket. He handed it to her and she wasted no time blowing her nose rather loudly onto the handkerchief.

Cassie knew she had made more mess by doing this and she nervously glanced up at the kind stranger expecting to see his disgusted expression but she was relieved and surprised when he just continued to smile at her like it was nothing.

"Here," He reached his hand towards the handkerchief, "Let me help you with that."

She let him clean her nose up and she was astonished at how he was calmly and kindly handling this. When he was done, he just simply crumpled the used handkerchief and placed it back inside of his pocket.

"So um...you hungry?" He glanced around them with a nervous smile, "I think I went past by a Pastry shop earlier and-"

Then he stopped abruptly.

"I mean if it's fine with you!" His eyes widened in alarm as he suddenly started to realize what his words probably meant to others.

Cassie blinked at him, "Daddy said not to go with strangers."

The male visibly flinched, "Y-You're dad is a great man then for reminding you of that."

He scratched behind his head before sighing, "So, shall I call the police then? I know someone else who can help you."

Guilt pierced her heart at the troubled face the teen was making. He's a really nice person and she doesn't want to be a trouble to him.

"My name's Cassandra Lang but you can call me Cassie!" She raised her hand towards him, "Nice to meet you, mister!"

Peter startled at this but directed his gaze at the extended hand before hesitantly grasping her small hand and shaking it, "My name's Peter Parker," He smiled at her, "Nice to meet you too, Cassie."

So this was how Peter and his new friend's little detour ended. Sitting inside the local Pastry shop, eating strawberry jam-filled donuts and enjoying their chocolate smoothies.

"Hey Cassie if don't mind me asking," Peter waited for the girl to glance at him, "What were you doing here? I mean with your father and all of that?"

Cassie grinned before moving closer to him and the teen unconsciously leaned down, "Can you keep a secret?"

"I can do that." Been doing that for almost 2 years now actually.

"The reason my dad brought me here," she paused for dramatic effect and Peter couldn't help smiling at that. He used to do a lot when he was young too.

"Was because he said that he'll let me meet Captain America!"

Then Peter's mind turned blank.


	3. Chapter 3

Peter's appetite diminished immediately. Right, Captain America.

What were the chances that the crying kid he encountered was supposedly also about to meet the rogue avenger? Just his Parker luck doing its job again apparently.

He wanted to bang his head onto the table in front of him but he didn't want to worry Cassie. The kid already had a rough day.

Peter was brought back when something nudged his knee and his eyes landed on the girl's face. Hers indicated that she was waiting for him to say something.

"That's great." The teen swallowed, "A lot of people would like meet to him."

Cassie's enthusiasm spiked up, "Do you wanna know why or how?"

Before Peter could even nod, the other started babbling excitedly, "My dad said he met Captain America at an airport!"

'I did too actually...'

"He also said that he was really awesome," she threw her hands in the air, "The stories from the past doesn't even compare to what Dad had witnessed. I wish I could see him fight too."

Peter winced slightly but it went unnoticed, 'Wouldn't want to face off with him again...wonder what he would have done if he knew that Spider-man was just a 15 year old back then during the fight.'

"I don't get why people think he's a bad guy when he isn't," Cassie took a huge bite out of her donut, "They should stop."

He nodded while unconsciously furrowing his eyebrows, 'They should think like that too about Tony.'

The girl must have misinterpreted his expression and thought that it's one of envy or something akin to it at least, "I hope I can let you meet Captain America too but I don't know if that's okay."

Peter snapped out of his musing and leaned towards the other with a grin, "That's alright and you know what? I have a secret to tell you too."

The little girl's eyes flashed with excitement when a gasp escaped her mouth, "That's great! Now we'll be both even."

The brunet leaned towards more and paused. He just couldn't help it.

His decision will probably bite his arse in the future but what the heck, he's already in trouble after he's through with the list.

"I'm actually going to meet him too."

Cassie gasped a little **too** dramatically that the half of the people present inside the shop paused at whatever they are doing to stare at her.

Peter carefully schooled his expression when he noticed the unwanted attention his new friend gained even though in the inside, he wants to freak out.

She stood up and almost knocked her smoothie over if it weren't for the other's fast reflexes.

The girl's face showed genuine awe as she pointed a finger at Peter, "You too?!"

He stabled the drink the directed a wink and smirk towards her, "Yup."

"That's great! We can go visit Captain America together," Cassie pumped her arm into the air, "And I get to introduce you to daddy and after that, I can introduce you to mommy and-"

"Hey, hey settle down Cassie," Peter chuckled half-heartedly then he whispered, "I'm also glad that I don't have to meet up with him alone but I would much prefer it if I meet him with only us because of the whole **"bad guys"** fiasco going on. You wouldn't them want them in an uncomfortable situation, would you?"

Another dramatic gasp, though it's quieter. "Of course not!"

Peter nodded with a smile, "That's right."

The girl sat back down while the people around them deemed that the situation was finally over and went back to minding their own business.

She finished her donuts and her beverage within the span of 2 minutes which were both amusing and alarming.

"Can we go now?" Cassie really, really tried not to show her excitement and diminishing patience from the brunet because not only would it be very rude, she would also like not to scare away her new friend.

"Yeah but I have to go grocery shopping first, is that okay with you?" Peter chewed on his donut anxiously.

She thought about it.

"It won't take long, I'll make sure of it "

Cassie then nodded, "Alright but we need to hurry up, please."

Grocery shopping, it can't possibly be that hard, right?


	4. Chapter 4

The donut and smoothie did nothing to ease the unsettling feeling Peter has in his stomach.

Something's going to happen at the grocery store, he's calling it now. He just hopes it's something he can deal with.

"So where are we going grocery shopping?"

Oh crap.

Peter bit his lower lip. He's not actually sure where the grocery store was but that doesn't mean he lied to Happy.

The brunet looked down at the smiling kid with hidden grimace, "I-I think it's around here somewhere."

Cassie's smiled dropped and she stopped walking to glance back with wide eyes, "Are we lost?"

Peter refrained from flinching and instead shrugged, "Well, I'm not sure where the exact location is but I've been here before."

His brown eyes roamed around the streets but he failed to see a single grocery store. Why does that it had to be clothing shops?

"How many times?"

He blinked, "What?"

"How many times did you visit this area before?" Cassie prompted softly.

"Uh...one?" Peter felt heat blooming on his cheeks, "T-That's was a few years ago too."

Cassie saw his embarrassment and grinned at the other, "Mommy said that even though you visited a place a lot of times, you'll still forget some things and that's normal."

Except he visited the grocery store that they're supposed to go to only once.

Peter tried not to panic at this thought.

He probably should've followed Happy's again, he wouldn't have found Cassie so it's better that the both of them are lost rather than just Cassie being lost.

"Should we ask someone for directions?"

Peter nodded with a soft sigh then he smiled at her, "You're a real smart kid."

He was about to call out to someone walking down the streets when woman's scream reached his ears.

It came from around the corner. He peeked around and he saw a man running towards their way with a purse in his hands.

The brunet pushed Cassie behind him. It's quite obvious that there's no one else that can stop the snatcher so he'll have to do it without his Spider-man suit.

As the frantic footsteps neared, Peter crouched down before telling the other to move a few more feet away from him.

Cassie seemed both confused and scared at this but said nothing against it.

He managed to tackle the guy down onto the ground when he turned the corner. He's thankful for his super-human powers but it still hurt when they collided with the hard cement.

Peter glanced down on the man with a fake look of distress in on his face, "I-I'm sorry, sir! I didn't see you there."

The said guy just scowled at him then shoved the teen off of him, "Damn brat!"

Peter trips the guy when he stood up which caused him to fall to the ground the second time.

Peter smirked a little when he heard the guy groan then he heard more footsteps behind him.

"Oh my god! My purse!"

He glanced up as another guy deliberately steps on the thief's hand making him yelp in pain.

"That's what you get from messing with us!" The guy had a shoulder-length blond hair that was currently sticking out in different directions. He also seemed to be out of breath. 'Probably from chasing the thief.' Peter mused.

Another female walked up at the fallen duo and she glanced down at Peter happily.

"Thank-" She seemed out of breath too as she held a hand to him, "Thank you so much!"

The brunet smiled though it looked more like a grimace, the fall was really painful but it was worth it.

He took her hand and with her help, he stood up but not before a groan of pain then left his lips.

Vigilante or not, the thief was at least 250 pounds and 6 feet tall. It was like a stick against a wall.

The woman furrowed her eyebrows in concern, "Are you alright? Are you hurt somewhere?"

This caught the other guy's attention too as he held the bag to his partner.

"Yeah, kid." He said, "Sorry you had to be dragged into this but there's something important inside the purse. Really appreciate the help by the way."

Peter smiled again then shook his head, "I'm glad I could help, sir."

"Oh, my name's Foggy Nelson and this lovely lady is," Foggy gestured to the woman, "Karen Page."

The teen's smile widened, "I'm Peter Parker, nice to meet you."

Karen chuckled, "I think I'll stick to Bambi."

Peter tilted his head to the side then blinked in confusion, "Huh?"

"I know right?!" The trio jumped at the new voice.

Peter glanced back at Cassie and ruffled her hair when she was near enough.

"I almost forgot," the teen patted her head, "This is Cassandra Lang."

The girl perked up some more, "We're traveling together."

She turned towards Karen with a huge grin, "I'm happy that I'm not the only one who noticed it. He really looks like Bambi!"

The blonde squealed before unexpectedly hugging the teen and Cassie.

Peter blinked a few more times, "Um..."

Cassie giggled, "It means we find you adorable."

The brunet had never blushed so hard in his entire life.

"Karen, I think you broke him." Foggy deadpanned, "People are also starting to stare at us. Please stop."

Another groan of pain left the forgotten thief on the ground. All four of them glanced down.

"So, ah... mind calling the cops now?"

Minutes later a police car arrived and the cops took care of the culprit.

A police walked up to Foggy and smiled, "Thanks for helping us catch this guy."

Foggy returned the smile, "Don't thank me. Thank Peter, Brett."

Officer Brett turned to Peter, who was finally out of Karen's arms, then gave him a pat on the back, "Great job, kid."

Peter felt another blush bloom across his cheeks, "U-Um, it was nothing, Officer."

Said officer nodded and smiled before turning to Foggy again, "That thief was notorious in this street for snatching purses in broad daylight."

Foggy snorted, "Probably to avoid a beating from DareDevil."

Peter blinked at the name. It sounded really familiar but he can't put his finger on it.

"Thanks again for the help. The police appreciate it a lot." Officer Brett nodded his head before turning and walking back to the police car.

'Police here are nice... wish my folks back at my place are like that..." The teen sulked.

Karen then turned to him with a smile, "Seriously, thank you though."

Foggy nodded, "Yeah, if we lost this purse, our case will be gone along with our efforts so yeah we really appreciate it."

Cassie blinked, "Case? Like lawyers?"

Both of them nodded, "Ever heard of Nelson and Murdock?"

Both the teen and the kid shook their heads, "No, sorry..."

Foggy seemed kinda disappointed at this but he nodded nonetheless, "Oh okay then."

Karen decided to step in before it becomes awkward, "Is there anything we can do in return?"

Peter shook his head in denial, "No, it's alright really!"

Karen frowned slightly, "But this is something important and surely we bothered you when you have places to be so let us make it up to you, bambi."

Peter blushed at the nickname but then froze. Right, they had other places to be but...

He glanced at the two of them, "Well actually..." He sheepishly rubbed a hand behind his neck, "I need some um..."

The two blonds looked at him expectantly, "You see we're not from here and we need to find a grocery store but..."

Karen smiled softly at him, "You're lost, aren't you?"

Peter doesn't know a time were he blushed so much on a single day, "Y-Yeah..."

He smiled sheepishly, "This isn't exactly my neighborhood."

"Well that answers the question why you don't know who the amazing Nelson and Murdock are." Foggy grinned at them.

"Did you mention grocery store?" Karen looked through her purse, "We passed one earlier but if it's alright, we're also going to a nearby grocery store to meet someone."

She held out a bunch of coupons, "You could come with us."

The brunet glanced at Cassie, "Is that alright with you, Cassie?"

She grinned, "Yes it is! More adventure."

Peter gave out a huge sigh of relief.

It didn't took them long to reach their destination which Cassie was happy about.

"Well, we're here," Karen handed Peter the coupons, "Have fun shopping kids."

The brunet smiled at her, "Thank you so much for this."

"It nothing compared to what you did," Foggy ruffled his hair, "Hope to see you soon."

Peter took out the list as he and Cassie entered the grocery store.

"What are we getting?"

His eyes raked the words on the paper, "We need to buy some meat, fruits-"

"On it!"

It took a second too late for Peter's brain to realize that Cassie dashed off to one of the huge aisles.

He immediately ran after her. He couldn't afford to lose sight of the kid.

Peter sped up his strides but upon turning around the corner, he almost found himself falling on his backside if it weren't for the hand that grabbed his arm.

A groan left his lips. He felt like he hit another brick wall.

"My, are you alright?"

Peter glanced up at the person and felt the need to slap himself across his face.

He just collided with a blind dude. If the cane didn't gave it away, it was probably his weird (creepy) red glasses. How rude of him...

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to - I was being reckless." Peter straightened himself.

The guy seemed to observed him for a while even though, hypothetically, he is blind (or is pretending only if that's the case but he doubt it).

Then he smiled oddly and spoke in such a calm manner that made him more creepy to Peter, "No need, young man. I was also being reckless."

Peter blinked at that. Okay so how in the world did the guy know he's young if he is freakin' blind?

Maybe it's his voice? He does get teased a lot because of it despite his protests.

The teen couldn't help but feel creeped out about this and if his Aunt May knew, she would be scolding him for judging people right away but there's something...odd about the guy.

"Matt!"

This both snapped the two of them with their musing and Peter had to stand on his tiptoes to look over the guy's shoulder (because dude, the guy's tall!) to see two familiar faces.

"Matt, you can't walk away just like that!" Foggy was the first one to reach them, "It's dangerous."

Karen then appeared into his view, "I just hate it when you suddenly do that."

Then their gazes landed on the petrified and confused teen.

"Bambi!" Unsurprisingly, it was Karen who first spoke up and she went up to him to give him another big hug.

Foggy seemed generously surprised, "Oh, it's you again, kid."

Matt who was still facing (STARING AT) Peter, raised an eyebrow, "You know him?"

"Yeah!" Foggy's voice seemed happy, "He was the one we said to you that got Karen's purse back from the bas-"

"Not in front of the kid!" Karen's somewhat motherly voice chided.

"I-I mean thief." The blond finished nervously then he glanced at Peter, "So what you still doing here? Shouldn't you be shopping, kid?"

Before the brunet could open his mouth, Matt beat him to it, "The young lad and I collided but it wasn't his fault. I should have expected him beforehand."

Peter became more and more confused. Again, how could a blind guy know something like this could happen unless he has some kind of super senses and whatnot.

But the teen decided not to answer that.

Oh and he suddenly remembered Cassie.

Crap.

"I'm so sorry again,"Peter once again rubbed his neck which is a habit he developed during his time in highschool.

Matt's odd smile softened, "It's alright and thank you for your help, Peter."

He unconsciously shivered after hearing his name. Goosebumps appeared on his arms, no doubt, but he was glad he was wearing a hoodie.

Foggy then spoke up again, "This is the guy I was talking about earlier. He's our friend Matt Murdock, my partner-in-law."

Peter was intrigued that an amazing blind guy became a lawyer. Amazing but ultimately creepy.

"That's awesome." The teen smiled politely, "I hope the best for your cases."

"Hey, where's Cassie by the way?" Karen spoke for the first time.

Peter bit his lip, "She ran off as soon as we entered."

He saw their alarmed faces, "But don't worry! I'll find her."

"If you're sure."

Both Foggy and Karen glanced at him with a small smile, "We'd really like to help you some more but we have to go to another client."

Peter nodded, "It's alright, I understand."

He bid goodbye to them once again but he still felt odd around Mr. Murdock.

That's not the issue he's supposed to be concerned about at the time being.

Now where the heck did Cassie ran off to?


End file.
